20,000 Congolese refugees flee Ituri into Uganda

Kampala- Uganda (PANA) -- Some 20,000 DR Congo refugees, mainly women and children, have fled clashes between rebel and government forces in the restive eastern Ituri region, into neighbouring Uganda's western district, local administration officials said.
David Masereka, Resident Commissioner of Uganda's Kisoro District, Wednesday quoted the refugees as saying the rebels had "overrun a Congolese government outpost across the border.
" He said helicopters belonging to the UN peacekeeping mission in DR Congo (MONUC), were reportedly circling the air, while small arms fire could be heard near the affected border posts of Bunagana and Bunyonyi.
"We have asked the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the Disaster Preparedness and Refugee Ministry to intervene with humanitarian assistance to the growing number of refugees," Masereka noted.